There is a tradition of making resolutions during New Year’s Eve. However, many of these lists are full of goals that have nothing to do with personal finances. And although that is not bad, it is important to consider your economy and consider working for it in the immediate future.
Although New Year’s is months away, half the year has already passed, and it’s never too early to start considering steps to achieving your goals.
Save
Whether you want to travel more, make a large purchase, or fix your home, it is essential to maintain a savings fund that supports or reserves in these situations. In this way, you will not have to pay the entire amount from one moment to another, but quite the opposite, the expense will be distributed in the more significant number of days you dedicate to saving.
Experts recommend saving 20% of your income. However, if you are not able to keep that amount of money, you can start with a similar figure and increase it over the year.
Start or Increase Your Emergency Fund
Although it is the same as the previous point, it is not. An emergency fund is destined, as its name says, for emergencies. It is necessary since most people pay for emergencies with credit cards without considering the interest they can generate.
You can divide the 20% savings recommended by the experts (mentioned in the previous point) between your emergency fund and your regular savings fund.
Start a Retirement Fund
These types of goals are long-term, thinking about retirement from the workplace. If your employer offers you a 401 (k) plan, take advantage of this benefit since your employer will most likely make contributions on your behalf. A positive point of this plan is that the money is automatically debited from your payment. It means you will not be able to evade your monthly contribution.
If you are self-employed, ask your bank if they offer an IRA (Individual Retirement Account); they will have different plans, but remember that it is vital to think about the future and save for your retirement.
Eliminate or Reduce Discretionary Expenses
You decide to do discretionary expenses just for your own sake. For example, you are eating out, subscribing to a streaming service, music, or the gym.
Many of these services to which you subscribe no longer use them as you used to. It means you can spend months without going to the gym and continue paying the monthly fee, use only a streaming service, and pay three.
These are the expenses that you must analyze and eliminate or reduce. This way, you will have more money at your disposal for the rest of your financial goals.
Catch Up With Your Taxes
Before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) seizes your wages or places fines, it is crucial to update your taxes.
Like most debts, tax debt has a range of solutions available when you do not know how to get out of this financial commitment that could have been behind for a few years.
Pay Off Your Credit Card Debt
It is one of the most common debts in the United States. Most consumers need to learn how to use their credit cards and allow the interest rate to grow, little by little, the amount they charge at the time of making a purchase.
This type of debt grows because users believe that by making the minimum payments monthly, they are lowering their debt. However, interest takes most of the payment, and the principal debt continues to rise.
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